Last Farewell
by e-Miliko
Summary: Rikku is in Guadosalam to visit the Farplane. She has always said there are only images of your memories in there, but she wishes so hard to be wrong...
1. Chapter 1

_This is a translation of a story I wrote in french. So if you are a French speaking reader,_ vous avez sans doute meilleur temps d'aller lire la version originale, « Dernier adieu ».

_I tried my best with the translation, but I am not an native English speaker, so please be kind!_

_I hope you will like it._

_The Cover image was made with the "Elven portrait maker" from the site azaleasdolls. You can find it easily using a search engine._

Last farewell

The paths and footbridges of Guadosalam were bathed in its perpetually diffuse light. Day and night always looked the same here, but now the activity was slowing down for the rest hours. The streets were almost empty there was only a few stragglers left and it wouldn't be long before they go home or to an inn. And then, of course, there were the sentries guarding the path to the Farplane's portal.

Rikku was hiding in the shadow of a curve and peered out. The two sentries were not unattentive, but they weren't particularly on the alert, either. However, the silence was almost complete in the tree city, and even a faint sound would be clearly audible. She had better to be _really _stealthy.

Well, no point to keep hesitating, she knew why she was here, all the visitors she had seen enter the portal had come out long ago, it was time. Hidden in a curve of the footbridge leading to the portal, Rikku stepped over the guardrail et clung to its external side, and then began to move forward using the intricate patterns woven by the intertwined branches and roots, taking care to remain out of sight et as silent as breeze.

It became harder to progress when the footbridge started to go up toward the portal, not far beyond the sentries. She bended and raised her leg high to support her weight, so she could pull herself up despite the limited strength in her arms, and suddenly she thought that maybe a miniskirt was not the best suited outfit for this. She smirked : well, she was precisely not supposed to be seen, so it didn't matter, right ? She could have been naked all the same, no ? At this thought, she almost laughed out nervously, but barely managed to control herself and kept on climbing.

After endless minutes, she finally reached the level of the portal. It was the most dangerous moment : she had to step over the guardrail again to come back on the footbridge and then pass the portal. If a guard were to turn toward her at this moment, he couldn't fail to see her.

She pulled herself upward, raised her leg high to avoid stumbling on the railing and regained her balance on the footbridge. She could see clearly the two guards below, and the platform where she had once waited for the others when they had entered the Farplane during Yuna's pilgrimage. She sighed silently: one of the reasons that had kept her from passing the portal then was precisely the reason why she wanted to go through it today. Before one of the guards could turn over, she passed the strange light veil to enter the Farplane.

Silence had a different texture here. The silence of Guadosalam city in its sleepy hours was like heavy velvet, with light rustles seeming to float in the air. In the Farplane, it was the silence of a cathedral. It seemed to extend endlessly. More or less like on a ship with all engines turned off on a dead calm in the night. Rikku didn't know if she should feel tiny, overburdened, or on the contrary elated.

She shook her head, making her braids fly. No metaphysics, she had come with a set goal. In the middle of pyreflies' arabesques that seemed sometimes to cling to her, Rikku walked to the edge of the stone platform, looked around one last time to make sure she was alone and faced the infinite.

She inhaled deeply and then said the name of the person she wanted to see : « Auron ».

The pyreflies agglutinated, and an image formed, the image of the legendary Guardian with two victorious pilgrimages, wearing his no less legendary red coat, his no less legendary sword thrown as if carelessly over his shoulder despite its size. Just like before, his face was almost entirely hidden by his high collar and his dark glasses. How many times had Rikku tried to meet his gaze nonetheless ? Without much success... except when he deigned to take off those glasses she both liked and hated.

Rikku shook her head again. She had not come to get lost in her memories, like most people did here. She had come to act, to make a desperate attempt, to provoke a last chance, and she wanted to know. She inhaled again and her voice rised in the silence of the Farplane.

« Hello, Auron. You're the one I've come to see. You didn't change, did you ? Unlike me, right ? That's why I'm here. You remember, during Yuna's pilgrimage ? I was the youngest, the little Rikku, the kid. The one no one takes seriously, right ? And yet, you did end up taking me seriously, didn't you, Auron ... ? »

She untied the blue bandana holding back her braids and they fell against her back and shoulders.

« ... Over all those weeks, those months travelling together. When I asked you for advice about my training ... When we both remained here outside, waiting for the others... When you mistreated me in the Thunder Planes, to make me more angry than frightened, but I understood that only later... »

She took off her scarf, and let it fall on the ground.

« All those evenings when we talked together, when you were keeping watch and I was supposed to be sleeping... Well, in the beginning I was doing most of the talking, wasn't I ? But then, little by little, you talked more... And I fell in love with you... »

She began to undo the ribbons of her right sleeve one by one, until the piece of cloth slid to the ground, steadily staring at Auron's image floating in front of her.

« And we became closer, more and more, do you remember ? And after we escaped Bevelle, when we got together again, I mean when we were just the two of us after that... When we kissed for the first time... It was unbelievable, impossible... and yet in the same time... obvious. I will never forget the way you looked at me after that, as if you couldn't really believe it either. »

She pulled at the bows of her second sleeve, always without looking at her fingers, and the fabric fell on the ground with a soft rustle.

« After that I was always seeking any excuse so we could be alone together, even just for a few minutes. And you were always smiling when you saw me approaching, I knew it even before you opened your collar. And those nights when I managed to sneak into your tent, when we talked together softly, and sometimes I ended up falling asleep. And sometimes, I pretended to be asleep and I felt you caressing my hair with the tips of your fingers. But you know it already, I guess. »

Rikku kept quiet for a second. If Auron could hear her, he already knew all this, of course but it was easier to keep talking. She resumed her speech aloud :

« And finally, there was the last night on the airship, before we faced Sin. We could die, all of us or only some, and I knew that even if we won, you would go. So I came to meet you in your cabin. I wanted... wanted us to make love for that last night, but you refused... You said... »

Rikku lost her voice for a second, but swallowed and carried on :

« ... you said that I was too young. That you loved me... but that you... that you could not desire me that way... That sometimes you looked at me and saw the woman I was becoming, and for a moment you could desire that image, but that you still saw too much the child I still was... »

Still standing straight, Rikku took off her shoes by stepping on their backs.

« ...You said that... that I was pretty, that I was obviously going to become even prettier, but that... that I was too young... I tried to go away slamming the door and crying, but fortunately you held me back. I spent the night in your arms anyway, but not the way I had planned... »

Rikku kept silent for a second and then reached beside her back with both hands, to untie her bikini top. She resumed speaking :

« But now, Auron... Men do look at me like a woman. I know, I've observed them. Maybe I've even provoked them a bit, sometimes. »

She held the thin piece of bikini at the tips of her fingers before letting it fall.

« There is only my father left, and maybe Brother, to look at me like a little girl... But that doesn't really count, does it ? »

In a single move she took off her miniskirt and the bottom of her bikini and left them in turn on the rock, taking one step forward. She was completely naked and stared at Auron's image.

« So, Auron, now would be an excellent time to prove I was wrong, when I thought the dead here were only projections of our memories and nothing more. You quite liked to prove me wrong, didn't you ? Then, then Auron... it would be perfect, right now... Because I am not a little girl anymore, and I... I would like you... you to show me that... that you regard me as a woman... »

Rikku's voice faded away and she stood without moving. The pyreflies were floating around her, sometimes seeming to cling to her hair or brush her skin. The light bubbles were dancing in the same way around the always immobile image of Auron. The only movement was their sparkling.

Rikku, standing straight, her chin up, had her eyes fixed on the red clothed figure. Time stretched out...

* * *

_What comes next is already written, I just (hum...) have to translate and proofread it. If you like the story, please leave a review, it will motivate me to work on it faster._  
_And if you wishes to help me fix the translation, you will be welcome, send me a pm._


	2. Chapter 2

_Here's comes the second chapter! I changed the rating because, well... you'll see..._

_Translating this chapterto english was more difficult, there are longer sentences and so on... I did my best, but some things will certainly sound weird. I hope you will enjoin the reading nonetheless._

Time was stretching out, but nothing happened. One, and then two minutes went by. In the end, Rikku clenched her fists and teeth, then closed her eyes contracting her eyelids. Tears began to run on her cheeks. She turned away from the motionless image and lowered her head. She was silently crying. « Idiot. Idiot, idiot, idiot. You really hoped it would work ? Just, just because you desperately wanted it, you believed it could work... it couldn't work. You won't see him again. Never. »

Tears were flowing on her cheeks, sobs were clutching her throat without bursting out yet, she simply couldn't consider what she should...

« Rikku. »

Rikku's heart skipped a beat and she opened her eyes wide in one go, freeing the last tears that ran on her wet cheeks. This only word which had just echoed in the unreal silence of the Fareplane had been pronounced by a low and deep voice, a bit husky, the voice that had haunted her thoughts for years. She dared not move anymore.

« Rikku. I am enjoying the sight, but you should turn around nonetheless.

« Oh ! », exclaimed Rikku, turning around in one go. She felt her cheeks getting red. He was here.

In front of her stood Auron, always the same with his red coat, his sword on his shoulder. But he was not floating beyond the rocky platform anymore, he was standing on the stone edge, and heavily but smoothly he stepped off. They were facing each other a few meters apart and Rikku didn't dare to move or speak anymore. Auron put his sword away, leaning it against a rock. Then he began to open his collar. Rikku felt the tears coming back, but this time it was not from despair. She didn't remember him opening his collar for someone else than her. She whispered : « You're here... you've come...

-The way you've called me was... very persuasive. But I won't be able to stay, or follow you out of this place.

-I... I guessed so. But... for now... you're here...

-Yes. For you. »

He held out his hand to her, she reached out in response and walked toward him like in a dream. He grasped the tip of her fingers, pulled her closer and placed a hand on her lower back, just above her bottom. A shiver ran along her spine, she shuddered but pulled herself together. Slowly she raised her hands, grasped Auron's glasses and took them off. She folded them et slipped them in a pocket of his coat. She gave a faint and trembling smile, and whispered : « Auron... » He smiled too, and the young woman stroked his cheek. « You're cold, » she said. « You too, » he answered, « but it will get better. »

He place his other hand on the side of her throat, covering her ear and the bone of her jaw, and pulled her face to him, leaning to meet her. He kissed her on the lips, and it was a wonderful kiss, intense, passionate but not harsh, amorous. Rikku let herself go against him, clung to him with her hands clenched on the red coat. She felt herself melting under the heat that was passing between them, that seemed to increase in Auron's palm against her cheek, that seemed to emanate more and more from him.

Yet, as the kiss was lasting deliciously, another heat arose in Rikku's lower belly. Heat, and desire. A pressing desire. This time, she broke the kiss to whisper : « Auron, tell me, tell me that this time..., that this time you... you'll want... That I am not a little girl anymore... »

He moved his hand slightly to stroke her eyebrow and her temple with his thumb, with a slightly amused smile on his lips.

-I've seen it, Rikku. You are a gorgeous woman. You're beautiful, and desirable.

-You do mean it ? You think I'm beautiful ?

He chuckled, and leaned toward her to whisper in her ear : « You're beautiful... enough to give a dead man a hard-on. » Saying this, he applied more pressure with his hand on her lower back, to press her firmly against him... and so she could tell he was saying the truth. Rikku inhaled suddenly, and without thinking arched her back, increasing the pressure of their bodies against each other. She threw her head back, closing her eyes to better enjoy the feeling of Auron's body against her, before opening them again to meet his gaze. She whispered :

-Auron... I want to make love with you...

-I know, he answered before Rikku this time joined their lips for a passionate kiss, her hands still holding on tightly to the front of the red coat.

Rikku felt almost thankful when Auron broke the kiss, so she could breath more freely for a few seconds her respiration was now really fast. But its rhythm didn't slow, and rather the opposite, when Auron began to kiss her neck and the hollow of her shoulder, while his widely opened hands were sliding all along her spine and on the whole surface of her back before brushing or pressing her waist, her hips, her bottom or her thighs.

The young woman raised her chin to better offer herself to his partner's lips, she arched her back to follow his hand's moves. Muffled exclamations of surprise mingled with her panting breath at the feelings aroused by Auron's caresses and kisses. She wanted this to go on, she wanted him to carry on touching her, but she also felt a growing desire to touch him in return, to be in contact with his skin.

She let her hands go down on the red fabric of the coat until they closed on the belt, and her thief's fingers opened the buckle swiftly. She slipped her hands inside the coat and went up toward the shoulders to take it off. Auron had slowed down his caresses to make the task easier, and when the top of the coat left his shoulders, he finished removing it himself and wrapped it around Rikku's shoulders. She closed her eyes and let herself be overwhelmed by Auron's heat and smell that pervaded the piece of clothing.

She opened them again soon however, firmly determined not to settle for having taken off Auron's coat, as emblematic as it may be. However, she hesitated for a second while moving her fingers forward, wondering how she should continue, and he took advantage of this to seize her wrists, saying : « Wait. » Before she could protest, pyreflies began to sparkle on the warrior's body, and his clothes dispersed in a cloud of light bubbles, leaving him as naked as Rikku was. Even more, actually, since she was now wearing his coat on her shoulders.

The young woman opened her eyes wide and then blinked a few times, surprised. Her gaze left Auron's face to go down toward his torso. She already knew he was muscular she knew the shape of his arms, and in the past, during Yuna's pilgrimage, she had sometimes tried to spy on the boys when they were washing at a river, but always from afar and through bushes, and never for long for fear of being caught... But now, it was different. She could look at him as much as she wanted.

Auron had... a warrior's body, muscles carved by and for effort, strong, harmonious, not the muscles of a conceited playboy. The scars of his wounds didn't break in the least the impression of power that radiated from him. Rikku's hands followed her gaze, and she put them on his partner's skin. She whispered :

-Auron... You are... You're really... wow.

The warrior chuckled. He had released his hold on Rikku and he let her explore his skin in her turn. She let her hands glide slowly on the arms and torso of her companion. She sometimes barely touched him, sometimes applied more pressure, she followed the shape of the muscles, along the shoulders, the neck, on the line of the collarbone, along the sternum. Auron was not very demonstrative, but something throbbed pleasantly in Rikku's stomach, when she realized he was breathing faster. Her eyes followed the lines she was tracing with her fingers, on the chest, going down to the lower ribs, to the abdominal muscles and... lower. She bit her lips and raised her head when she heard Auron say, with a trace of amusement in his tone : « You're blushing. » She turned her gaze to the side, to the ground, mumbling :

-Well... yes. Probably because I've never...because I am... still... well... you know ?

He took hold of her chin to bring her eyes back to him :

-I got that. But why, Rikku ? You were always so curious of new things...

-Because I wanted it to be you, Auron, she answered without hesitation.

He didn't answer. He was looking at her without faltering. Rikku's answer didn't seem to surprise him. After a few seconds, he simply said : « Then... » before he took her face in his hands to kiss her again. This kiss was slow at first, but determined, insistent, and Rikku reacted very quickly her breath speeded up again, she put her arms around her companion's neck to keep their lips more firmly joined. She felt Auron slightly smiling against her mouth. He let one of his hands slide down to the small of her back, griped her neck with the other, and intensified the kiss even more.

Rikku felt herself melt and burn at the same time and a delicious tension twitched in her stomach. She abandoned herself against Auron and their skins, their bodies pressed against each other. Rikku's legs were threatening to yield under her weight like jelly. Probably he noticed, and in one go, with a supple move, he leaned on her, kissing her more ardently, made her tip over and straightened holding her, still wrapped in the coat, in his arms. She let out a cry of surprise and clung to his neck as if shipwrecked, before realizing what was happening to her. Then she relaxed languidly, happily, in her companion's arms.

It was a delicious way to feel the strength of his arms and torso. She felt at his mercy and at the same time totally safe. He was carrying her without visible effort, she had the impression that the world was coming down to him, his strength, his heat, the soft pressure of his arms that were enveloping her. She buried her face in the hollow between Auron's neck and shoulder, to better breath the scent of his skin and forget all that was not him.

« You'll make my head spin, » she whispered with a soft chuckle.

« I hope so, » he said in a breath at her ear.

« Mmmh, » went Rikku, letting her lips slide in the warrior's neck, on his throat, half kissing half brushing, until she reached his ear and murmured :

« Yes... just do it... make me lose my head... »

« At you command, » he answered.

A those words, the young woman felt her breath speed up again, and when a few seconds later Auron kissed her passionately, her stomach clenched in a spasm of desire et she moaned soflty. He was holding her tight, was kissing her with fervor, imperatively, and she didn't feel like resisting him at all. Suddenly he let himself fall on his knees, et she cried out in surprise he laid her down on the ground and lay close to her, leaning toward her, almost on her.

He was kissing her, again, still, on her lips, on her neck, her throat, her shoulders. He was caressing her, his free hand gliding from her face to her legs, sometimes in long sliding moves, sometimes with insistent pressure. Every now and then, his weight on her pressed her against the ground.

Rikku's universe came down to Auron : the warmth of his body, his scent coming from him and at the same time from the coat under her that was protecting her from the stone's cold, the taste of his skin when she managed to put her lips on it between the gasps and moans she couldn't suppress, the sound of his quickening breath, the moves of his muscles under her palms as she clung to him and pulled him closer, the sweat now covering his body under her gliding fingers.

He seemed to claim her body for himself with his caresses and at the same time to seek all the means to arouse desire in it. He was underlining her hips, was covering her stomach with his palm, was going higher at each passage brushing the tender skin of her inner thighs, was obviously taking a perverse pleasure in _not_ touching her breasts and in foiling her attempts to put them on the path of his hand, as if he wanted her to wait, to wait longer, to wait for nothing but this, and, holy machina, it was exactly how she felt, she _wanted, needed _him to put his hand just there, to appease, or exacerbate, she didn't now anymore, the pins and needles she felt. And finally, at last, he did it, trapped her right breast under his palm, pressing, caressing, modelling, and Rikku arched her back abruptly :

« Ah !... Auron !... »

He insisted and his other hand landed on Rikku's left breast. He was now kneeling between her thighs, leaning on her, and she couldn't tell when he ended up there.

For a while, she didn't think of anything and just let the feelings wash over her and her body move on its own to offer itself more and more to the caresses and touches, and kisses, because Auron was now wandering her skin with his lips. Rikku was panting, moaning, she was in turn whispering and calling her lover's name. He kissed her neck, her throat while caressing her hips, he brushed her breasts with his lips, as his hands were modelling her shoulders or her bottom, he let his mouth glide along her thigh.

Her eyes shut, Rikku surrendered herself to him. She didn't know what she was doing anymore. Her hands went from his partner's hair to his shoulders, or clenched the fabric of the coat under her. Auron was attentive to her reactions, he insisted when a move made the young woman react and moan in pleasure, he followed her moves to meet her yearning, or to the contrary thwarted her expectations to intensify her desire.

And then Auron laid down on her, his mouth against her ear, and whispered her name : « Rikku... » It was his voice, his extraordinary voice, deep and husky, but mixed with his heavy breath, fast, and filled with desire. Hearing him, Rikku had the impression that an electric arc went through her muscles. She arched her back and moaned : « Mmmh ! Ah ! Auron... » because she knew, she knew what he meant, what he was asking. She felt his hand holding her hip, she felt his knees against her inner thighs, ready to part them more, she felt the tension in his lower back, the moves he was still holding back, she felt the almost unconscious swaying arising in her own hips...

She inhaled sharply, swallowed and panted : « « Ah ! Auron... I... Auron ! » She couldn't form the words, not even the « Yes ! » that all her being was screaming silently. So she pulled Auron more tightly against her, her hands clenched on his lower back, pulled him against her and more, as she spread her thighs wider. He followed her invitation, lay himself on her fully, and searched her, find her, and entered her slowly, with a continuous and controlled move, while he was whispering her name again, ardently.

Nothing could have extinguished Rikku's desire, and certainly not the brief pain caused by the resistance of her virginity. She even welcomed it : it was a proof that all this was real, that it was not another dream.

Her desire was burning, blazing, and pleasure was arising, physical pleasure but enhanced, exalted by the emotional desire, the wild joy that he was hers, that she was his, just like she had so often dreamed.

She was giving herself completely, without restraint or hesitation. He was finding exactly the right moves to inflame her senses. Feeling him that way, so close, in her, with her, his breath against her ear, his panting breath mixed with hers, and hearing her name that he was repeating more ardently with each passing second while she was screaming his, it was... it was...

And pleasure exploded in her, seized her, threw her out of herself. She screamed Auron's name one last time, her back arched like a bow to meet him, and she fell back in his arms, trembling, out of breath, clinging to him, moaning and disoriented.

He hold her against him, whispering her name again and again, softly now, mixed with love words, until her breath, slowly, calmed down and the pleasure spasms that were still making her shake became less frequent and disappeared. Rikku stayed still, eyes shut, breathing in the scent of his lover's skin, while he was softly caressing her back with the tips of his fingers, without releasing his embrace.

For long minutes, she remained so, peaceful, appeased, overwhelmed by a sensation of plenitude. She had the feeling that she was where she belonged. She did not feel the coldness of the air, the hardness of the stone. She only felt Auron's presence and it was as if time did not exist anymore.

_Hope you enjoined! Ah, before I forget: I took Rikku's swearing "Holy machina" from Enkida's story "Memento vivere". If you haven't read it, you should really give it a try!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 was supposed to be the last, but I am really slow with the translation now (real life, and so on...). So I decided to give you the first half of the last chapter, something like chapter 3a. Hope you will enjoy it. And I will continue to work on the translation of the last part. So see you soon (or so I hope). **

Chapter 3

Auron didn't move, as if he didn't want to disturb Rikku's plenitude. He kept the soft pressure of his embrace et she surrendered to his comforting presence.

At last she did open her eyes again and breathed in deeply, her nose against her companion's skin. Out of the corner of her eye, her face buried in the hollow of Auron's shoulder, she followed the movements and arabesques traced by the pyreflies. Reality slowly came back to her mind. The portal to the Farplane. Its ground of hard stone. The pyreflies. The pyreflies that were fluttering about, waiting for someone to call a deceased person to form an image of him or her... Uh-oh...

Rikku curled up. Of course, Auron noticed. He slightly loosened his embrace to meet her eyes :

-What's going on, Rikku ?

-Oh ! Nothing ! Well... I mean...I was wondering... Auron, do the dead... could they... could some of them... have appeared... while we... while we... Could they have seen... ?

The warrior laughed :

\- You're worrying about that _now _?

Rikku began to pout, and her cheeks were turning pink :

-Oh don't push it, OK ! I had more important things to think about... I was not even sure that... that... But answer me, instead of making fun of me ! Could they have... watched us ?

Auron still had a an amused smile on his face. He gently stroked Rikku's cheek with his thumb and answered :

-I think you can be reassured. The dead only manifest themselves when called, or when someone think of them hard enough. I did not hear you crying out another name than mine, so I think you can be reassured. Unless you were _thinking_ of someone else ?

Rikku gawked, outraged :

-Auron ! How can you... I would never... You cannot think... Auron !

The warrior laughed again and embraced her more tightly again.

-I'm teasing you, Rikku. I do not have any doubt. I could not have joined you here if you had not been thinking of me intensively.

The young woman's tension decreased and she relaxed again in his arms. However, the idea was still bothering her a bit :

-And so, if you don't call them, the dead cannot see anything of what happens here ?

-Those who are close to you, who care about you, like your mother for instance, probably sensed something, sensed that something important was happening to you and in all likelihood they are aware of what happened, but like a information they know, not like an event they witnessed.

-And the pyreflies, Auron ? Could they have... recorded... pictures ? And could they play them again later, like in Zanarkand Dome ?

-It is not like in Zanarkand. The pyreflies don't wor...

He broke off abruptly.

-Auron ?

He sat up suddenly, looking around and then staring at his hands.

Rikku sat straight too et stared at him without understanding.

-Auron ? Auron, what's going on ? You're scaring me !

He still didn't take his eyes off his hands, parting and tightening his fingers slightly. He turned toward the young woman nonetheless, palms still opened in front of himself, and he said with an indefinable emotion in his voice :

-Rikku... The pyreflies... I don't... They...

And suddenly, without warning, he grabbed the young woman's face in his hands et kissed her full on the lips, passionately. Rikku opened her eyes wide et first received the kiss without reacting. There was something brutal, urgent, in this kiss. Before, Auron had kissed her intensely, but his kisses gave an impression of mastery, of control. They were passionate because he wanted them so, he wanted to show her his desire. And well, it had worked perfectly. But now... this was a spontaneous kiss, unexpected, messy. In a way, this kiss was not like Auron... because Auron usually did not get overwhelmed by an emotion.

Auron finally released the kiss, but he kept his hands on Rikku's face, and leaned his forehead against hers, eyes shut. During long seconds, he kept silent, breathing fast. In the end, Rikku said with a small voice :

-Auron... ? What... What's going on ?

The warrior opened his good eye and met his companion's gaze, caressing her cheek with his thumb. He said softly :

-Rikku... The pyreflies... I don't feel them. I don't feel them anymore.

The young woman frowned and answered with insecurity in her voice :

-And... it is bad ? I've never felt them, you know...

-Rikku... the body of an Unsent is made of pyreflies, bound together by his will. To maintain cohesion, you need effort. Or you become a fiend, or you just fade away. The Unsent's control on the pyreflies also allows him to reveal himself, or to use them to show scenes he remembers. All of this is possible because the Unsent, if his will is strong enough, can feel and influence the pyreflies. With time and experience, sometimes you maintain the cohesion without really thinking about it, more or less as if you were clenching your teeth thinking of something else... But Rikku, I don't feel the pyreflies anymore, and yet... my body is still here !

-And... what does it mean ?

He kept silent, looking in the distance, before bringing his gaze back on her, intensely :

-Rikku... I think I have a living body again. I think you brought me back.

The young woman stared at her companion, her mouth half opened, as if the meaning of the words did not reach her brain. She frowned, and shook her head, incredulous, her eyes fixed on him, and then she whispered :

\- It's not possible... it can't happen... you're making fun of me...

He hold her face in his hands :

-I wouldn't make fun of you this way, Rikku. I do feel alive. Alive again.

She shook her head.

-I can't believe it, Auron. I cannot. I don't want to. I don't dare... because... if I believe it and then it's not true, if it's not true... I...

TO BE CONCLUDED


	4. Chapter 4

**At last, here is the final part of this story! It took me much time to translate, sorry, but I hope you will enjoy to read it!**

Her voice was trembling and tears were welling up in her eyes. He drew her swiftly into his arms.

-I do not want to give you false hope, Rikku. There a way to know for sure.

He looked toward the portal leading back to Guadosalam and the ordinary world.

-If I can go through the Portal, it means I'm right. Come.

He got to his feet and pulled at her hand to make her stand up too. Then he turned to face the circle of shimmering light. Rikku stumbled :

\- No ! Auron... wait... Wait !

\- Why wait, Rikku ? It is better to be sure. I don't want to hurt you with an uncertain hope. It is better not to waste time.

Rikku was holding him back by his arm, almost hysterical. She was searching for words :

\- You should... We should... at least... wait... for... for... you should wait for...

A sudden and incongruous thought came to her mind, she opened her eyes wide, blinked several times... and began to laugh uncontrollably, hiding her face against Auron's torso. He lifted an eyebrow, surprised, before wrapping his arms around the young woman, waiting for her to calm down. Gradually, her hiccups became less frequent, and he asked softly : « Rikku ? What's going on ? »

Struggling not to start laughing again, the young woman resumed :

-You should wait, at least, ...wait ... to be dressed again ? Otherwise... otherwise, if you pass the Portal, the Guado sentries will pull a strange face, won't they ?

Auron muffled a laugh :

-Yes, Rikku. We should get dressed.

He kissed her forehead, she nodded and he let her go. She gathered her clothes and started to put them on. She felt his companion's look on her, and to tell the truth, she did enjoy him looking at her this way. However, once she was fully dressed, she felt slightly uneasy. She pulled her skirt, as if to cover more skin, but of course she could only show alternately more thigh or more hip. She shrugged and turned toward his companion who hadn't move. She gazed at him ostensibly and then said :

\- I am enjoying the sight, but nonetheless you should get dress too, shouldn't you ?

\- You're standing on my coat, Rikku.

\- Oh, sorry, she said, quickly stepping to the side and bending down to pick up the piece of clothing. After grabbing it, she looked around, frowning. She exclaimed : « Oh ! » and turned toward her companion :

\- Auron... your other clothes... I think we didn't... bring them back...

\- I know. The coat will have to do for now.

Rikku giggled, but it got caught in her throat. If Auron clothes had not reappeared, then maybe, for real, he was not... he was again... A crazy hope was seeping in her, but she was terribly scared of the disappointment she could suffer and it was wringing her guts. Her hand and arm were shaking while she was handing the red coat to its owner. Auron put it on and tied the belt. It covered him enough to hide his nudity, luckily well, luckily, only in a sense, thought Rikku, musing on the warrior's body. She giggled nervously, but she was also feeling tears welling up in her eyes. She clenched her eyelids to contain them and felt Auron's hands landing on her shoulders. Hearing Auron's voice, his extraordinary voice, pronouncing her name, she opened her eyes again :

-Rikku. I want to know, without delay but nonetheless I want you to know something before.

He was staring at her, and the intensity of his expression made her forget everything else, captivated by his words.

-Rikku, you are the most extraordinary woman I have ever met. If I am to disappear again through this portal, I want you to use all your qualities, all that you are to forge for yourself the life you deserve. Go ahead. Do not let the memory of me prevent you from becoming all you can wish. Rikku of Bikanel, I love you, and I do know what I'm speaking about when I'm saying that this love won't die even if I am going to the Farplane.

Rikku had a lump in her throat, but a kind of peace engulfed her. She was not going to spoil this moment, maybe the last she could ever have with him, with a crying fit or an hysterical crisis. She took a deep breath et spoke :

-I... I love you too, Auron, legendary guardian of two victorious pilgrimages. And whatever may come, I will love you forever.

She lifted her chin defiantly.

-But if you do vanish again, I promise I will come here again every year, like I did today, and I will call Jecht instead!

Auron laughed under his breath, mouth closed, then answered :

-No need to make wacky threats to make me want to stay. Are you ready ?

-Kiss me, and then let's get over with it.

Auron seized her neck and her jaw in his hands before leaning toward her to join their lips. Rikku slipped her hands under the fabric of the coat to put them on her companion's torso directly against his skin. Neither of them tried to make the kiss last long. As if by common consent, they only kept drinking each other's breath for a few seconds after their lips had part. Rikku broke the spell by taking her hands away et saying :

-Let's go.

Auron let her go et turned toward the portal.

Rikku hold him back :

-Let me go first.

He nodded, and she turned toward the shimmering opening. She took a few steps et stopped a few centimeters away from the rippling surface. She looked over her shoulder toward her lover, Auron, the legendary guardian. He had put his dark glasses back on by some miracle they had not been crushed in his coat's pocket.

-I love you, Auron, she said.

-I know.

She turned again toward the light veil of the portal, took in a deep breath and got to the other side.

Guadosalam was always the same. As the good thief she was, Rikku immediately glanced at the sentries further down. They had not moved apparently and were looking toward the city and not toward the portal. The Guados tried to make sure that unwanted visitors could not enter the Farplane, but they did not really fear that anything could come out. It was better not to linger to long nonetheless.

Rikku took a few step away, as silent as she could, et turned to the passage. She brought her hand to her mouth and began to nibble her fingers. Auron was just a few steps behind her, he must come out any second now. Time seemed to flow by like syrup. Rikku's thoughts were colliding at full speed :_ Meaby he's waiting a bit, or_ _hesitating ? No, it's Auron, he doesn't hesitate. But maybe he's taking a breath, like before diving ? Or, he is doing it on purpose. Just to bother me, or to prove I don't know what. How long has it been, now, ten seconds ? He cannot take so long. Rikku, you had decided not to start having hope. If he doesn't come out, you...you won't be surprised. You won't break down. _She brought her second hand to her mouth. The surface of light was still not moving. _Oh no no no Auron don't do this to me... I swear to you I will come back and call Jecht, you cannot want this..._

The veil of the portal undulated, throwing droplets of light. A cloud of pyreflies ? _No !_ No. Just the splashes of someone coming through. Rikku bit her fingers harder. The silhouette appeared, became clearer. It was like the opposite of the movement that caused so much despair to Rikku back then on the Airplane, when Auron's shape had evaporated in wreaths of pyreflies.

He came out of the portal, the legendary Guardian, with his red coat, his dark glasses, his sword on his shoulder, eternally true to form. _Well, the shoes, and the rest of the clothes missing, _thought Rikku, almost chuckling nervously once again in this incredible night. Then she frowned, and set her eyes on the warrior's sword. _Holy sh... He went back to recover his sword ! This... took the time to pick up his bloody sword ! That's why it took him so long..._ Anger rose in Rikku in proportion to the fear she had felt. The relief matched the anguish too. Forgetting completely to be cautious, she came toward the warrior, opening her mouth to loudly make him know how she felt :

-Aur-... mmpf !

Fortunately for their discretion, Auron didn't let her the time to shout. He pull her with his free hand to kiss her and muffle her cry. It overcame her anger, or nearly. She enjoyed the kiss for a few seconds, and then moved slightly away and tapped his chest with her finger, saying softly :

-You went back to grab your sword... I was waiting for you, I was being roasted on my feet by anxiety, and you went back to grab your sword, you... you big meanie !

-I felt naked, he replied, sounding perfectly serious. And yet, despite the glasses, Rikku was certain that an amused spark was twinkling in his eye.

-Well, yes, you are, almost ! One more reason to avoid being caught here by the Guados. I don't think they would approve of naked people walking around in the Farplane.

-Who would like to see naked people in the Farplane ?

Rikku stuck her tongue out at him and resumed :

-We have to go.

-Do you have a plan ? We cannot bypass the sentinels on the footbridge.

-Yes, I do have a plan. Under this footbridge, there another one, a few meters below. We just have to move a bit away from the portal, step over the railing, check we're on the right place above it and let ourselves fall.

-Move away from the portal means getting closer to the sentinels.

-Yes. So we have to be silent. You can do that ?

-I can. But I go first.

-Why ?

-I can catch you when you let yourself fall. The opposite, I doubt.

-Oh. Well, as you wish. Come on.

And so they did. Rikku watched Auron step over the guardrail, securing his grip on his sword. She straddled the barrier too and when Auron hung with one hand from the footbridge, ready to let himself fall, she clung onto the outside of the guardrail to be less visible for the sentinels if they had the bad idea to look her way. She was not sure Auron would be silent enough to avoid arousing attention, even without his heavy boots.

Indeed, the sound of his landing was clearly audible in the muffled silence of the guado night. Rikku didn't make the mistake to glance over towards the sentinels above the guardrail. She looked down, waiting for Auron to recover and be ready to catch her after dropping off his precious sword, then she let herself fall too.

Landing in Auron's arms was in itself worth the risk to be caught by the guard of Guadosalam. He caught her firmly and efficiently and yet gently, cushioning her fall without visible effort. Despite the risk of being caught by the sentinels if they thought of leaning over the guardrail, Rikku almost stayed fascinated, contemplating her companion's face, snuggling in his arms. But Auron put her down on the ground smoothly, and she beckoned him to follow her to the next curve where they would be out off sight. Pressing herself against the wall, she cast a glance beyond the corner toward the footbridge above. The sentries had apparently really perceived something, but without identifying the source of it. Rikku saw one of the guards looking in all directions. He didn't seem particularly worried and at last he just shrugged and went back to his position. In the silence, she heard him say a few words to his colleague. She did not understand, but the tone suggested that he was closing the case.

She turned back toward her companion and threw her arms around his neck. He was probably expecting it because he embraced her at once. She smiled from ear to ear and said :

-It's ok, they won't raise the alarm. Operation « Last farewell » is a full success, and even beyond that !

-You gave a codename to your expedition tonight ?

-Well...yes. I did not act on a whim, you know. Whatever some may say, I am not a hothead... at least not always. I did think a lot about it, even if some details did not happen as planned.

Her smile broadened.

-Fortunately, she added.

He smiled back. That had not changed after all those years. Just one of Auron's rare smiles always made Rikku's heart jump. And now... against all odds, beyond despair and sadness, he was here, with her, and he was holding her. She kissed him. She could never be tired of his kisses. She slid her fingers in the collar of his coat, and the feeling of the naked skin reminded her that he wore nothing under his coat. That thought awoke pleasant feelings in her lower belly. She parted their lips and whispered, smiling :

-Tomorrow, I'll go get some clothes for you. But for now, come. I have a room at the inn. The night is not over. And then, we'll see.

-Yes, we'll see. We have time, he answered, letting her drag him along.

THE END

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